MAM
Reader’s Digest’s first ad campaign in 10 years – ‘Get Involved’
NEW YORK: Reader’s Digest, which claims to be the largest circulated magazine in the world, has announced the launch of its first advertising campaign in 10 years supporting the company’s flagship magazine. The tagline — Get Involved — urges advertisers to tap into the deep connection that 40 million US readers have with the magazine.
In one ad, a young couple is pictured behind the headline, “If we got any closer to our readers, we’d need a pre-nup.” In another, a young professional dines at a coffee house reading an issue behind the headline, “If we got any closer to our readers, they’d be finishing our sentences.” The ads will appear through 30 June in Advertising Age, Adweek, Mediaweek, Brandweek and The Advertiser as well as on phone kiosks in New York City.
An official release states that as part of the campaign, Reader’s Digest will offer members of the media community the opportunity to write copy for future ads and win a weekend at a luxury hotel by completing the phrase ‘If we got any close to our readers.’. The contest will reach advertisers via Adweek.com, Adage.com, and mailings.
An official release that the campaign is the latest step in an industry movement that values audience quality, not merely size, in media buying. Reader’s Digest has helped lead this charge among major magazines by creating the Involvement Index — an audience quality metric now used by account teams within agencies across the country. The Involvement Index has attracted support from a growing roster of magazine companies including Disney, National Geographic.
The Index rolls up key MRI involvement measurements (such as average reading time and percentage reading four of the last four issues) into one number, and allows planners to make quick, objective, defensible comparisons on magazine audience quality.
Executive publisher of Reader’s Digest Dom Rossi said, “A big audience is only valuable if the right people are paying attention. Advertised brands need prime time with consumers who are overwhelmed with information. That’s what counts. That’s what we deliver. With this ad campaign, we’re telling our story: We deliver consumers who are more involved with our content than any other magazine or TV show.”
Among the top 10 magazines reaching women 25 to 54, Reader’s Digest ranks second in involvement with an index of 161 (61 per cent above average, 3 points behind Parents). With an Involvement Index of 139, Reader’s Digest ranks second among the top 10 magazines for reaching PC-owning US households. National Geographic is first with 146.
Brands
Zscaler, Airtel launch India AI Cyber Research Centre
New hub to boost cyber resilience and trusted AI use
NEW DELHI: As India’s digital engine roars ahead, so do the risks riding shotgun. In response, Zscaler, Inc. and Bharti Airtel have joined hands to launch the AI and Cyber Threat Research Center – India, a national initiative aimed at strengthening the country’s cyber defences and accelerating responsible AI adoption.
The centre is designed as a multi stakeholder platform that brings together industry, government and academia. Its mission is clear: protect critical sectors such as telecom, banking and energy, shield everyday digital users, and future proof India’s fast expanding online ecosystem.
India has long been a major innovation hub for Zscaler, with a substantial portion of its cyber research talent based here. With this new centre, that footprint evolves into a national collaboration engine. The idea is simple but ambitious, build in India, for India, and help power the country’s journey towards a secure and digitally self reliant future.
The timing is telling. India is building digital systems at population scale, not just enterprise scale. That scale has widened the attack surface dramatically. At the same time, cyber criminals and nation state actors are deploying AI to scan, probe and exploit vulnerabilities in minutes.
Zscaler’s research arm, ThreatLabz India, reports millions of infiltration attempts every month. These include espionage campaigns linked to regional geopolitical tensions, 1.2 million intrusion attempts from 20,000 sources targeting 58 Indian digital entities, and a rise in zero day exploit attempts across multiple industries.
In such an environment, perimeter based security models are struggling to keep pace. The new centre aims to push a shift towards secure by design systems and Zero Trust architecture.
Its strategy rests on four pillars: protect through real time intelligence, remediate by working directly with government agencies, facilitate adoption of AI driven security and Zero Trust frameworks, and build a stronger cybersecurity talent pipeline through specialised certifications.
As founding members, Zscaler and Airtel will combine global threat intelligence with local network visibility. Zscaler will deploy a dedicated India focused research team and draw insights from its Zero Trust Exchange platform, which processes over 500 billion daily transactions worldwide. Airtel, meanwhile, will contribute deep visibility into IoT and mobile traffic, helping detect suspicious activity faster and coordinate response across the ecosystem.
Bharti Airtel executive vice chairman Gopal Vittal, said the partnership extends Airtel’s commitment to safeguarding customers and the nation’s digital fabric. He added that the collaboration would address challenges unique to the Indian market and encourage secure and confident digital engagement.
Zscaler chief executive, chairman and founder Jay Chaudhry, said India’s digital ambition cannot be secured with legacy firewalls and VPNs. He noted that a modern Zero Trust architecture is essential for a hyper connected world and that the new centre would harness the scale of Zscaler’s global security cloud while empowering a new generation of Indian cyber defenders.
Additional members from critical public and private sectors are expected to join the initiative in the coming months, expanding its scope and deepening collaboration.
In a world where threats travel at machine speed, India’s answer is to think faster, collaborate wider and build smarter.
